Disappointed

Thursday, November 10, 2011

I have been a sports' fan for longer than i can remember. While i may be naive with respect to some things in life, sports and the circus around it is not one of those things. Like many of you I was disturbed by the news coming out of Penn State over the past several days. When a young person is abused in such a way, it often moves me towards anger.

While I am concerned and prayerful for the familes that have been impacted by the lack of institutional control for the Penn State football program, i am deeply disappointed by the reaction of some of the fanatics who worship coach Paterno.

It was encouraging to see the university do the right thing, by forcing the coach to retire after he allowed this reprehensible and criminal behavior to go on during his watch for over ten years. To see video and pictures of blindly loyal students at this university rioting as a result of this decision causes me to be even more convinced of the overall depravity of our culture and society.

When does our loyalty to a team or individual supercede justice and righteousness? If this had happened to a High School football coach, there would be little if any public outcry. Why then do some of us overreact when it involves a man who has spent over forty years of his life in the public eye?

My prayers go out to those who have been victimized, and also to the perpetrator and those who sought to cover up his perversion. God help us if we truly care more about sports than our children.

It is a sad situation all around. I cry for the victims of these monsters. Paterno will no longer be defined as being a great coach, but a spineless jackwagon who turned a blind eye to child abuse. Paterno is just as responsible as Sandusky. Paternoster disgusts me almost as much as Sandusky the child molester.

Did he take it up his chain of command? Yes. was that the right thing to do? Not entirely. The welfare of our children should be first ALWAYS. Whether it was hearsay or witnessed first hand, it should have been reported to the police. When he didn't see any action being taken, then he should have taken additional action. I applaud the school for firing him. Those students who rioted saying "he didn't do anything"? They are right, he didn't, and is being punished accordingly. Shame on the students! And hopefully more heads will roll as the investigation continues!

Part of the problem of leadership is that you are always susceptible to being a scapegoat. i hate the way that this has unfolded and tarnished a good man's legacy. As an outsider, all I am able to see is the public response to the situation. You are correct in that there are numerous people who are at fault, but the essence of leadership is responsibility.